


a good feeling

by ladyofdecember



Category: The Simpsons
Genre: Autumn, Bert and Ernie, Falling In Love, Fire Pit, Halloween, M/M, Moving In Together, Party, Pumpkin pie, So Married, Target run
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-30
Updated: 2019-11-30
Packaged: 2021-02-24 15:47:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,487
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21620443
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ladyofdecember/pseuds/ladyofdecember
Summary: Lenny and Carl buy a house together and it's no big deal really, except it kinda is.
Relationships: Carl Carlson/Lenny Leonard
Comments: 8
Kudos: 86





	a good feeling

It had all started with the genius idea of the two of them going in on a new house together. It had made sense, one drunken night at Moe's after way too many Duffs, for the two of them to make the next move together. It was cost effective, splitting all your bills with your best buddy, you know? And hey, it would be convenient catching a ride in to work together every morning. Why not? What could go wrong?

Carl didn't think it was any big deal really. After all, the home he had been renting the last several years was badly in need of repairs. From the leaky pipes to the broken light sockets in the master bathroom, everything was just too badly aged and in need of updating. The landlord was an elderly lady who lived clear across town and had made it clear years ago that she had no intention of making any of the repairs herself. But, of course, if Carl were so inclined, he may do so himself, so long as he didn't leave any holes in the walls. 

Carl was certain that even if he had, the old bat would never know. She never even visited to check up on things. He'd been there for years and years now without seeing the old woman once, save for once or twice in the very beginning. Every month on the 1st, he dropped a check in the mail to be sent to her for his rent. Every month on the 1st, he'd look around the old home and sigh, wishing he could find a better place to live.

Then again, the aesthetic of the place had never really been a major issue. It's not like he ever invited anyone over. He mostly spent time at Moe's and sometimes at Lenny's. But no one ever visited him at his place.

If he'd had an active dating life then maybe he'd be more embarrassed about the state of the place. But it'd been six months since he'd last even gone out with a woman and even then, he'd had no intention of bringing her back to his place.

So when Lenny had suggested the idea, drunkenly slurring his words around, he'd thought, why not move out for a nice change of pace? 

They began looking at a few places around town, on the less how do you say, “rustic” side of town and more in the newer areas of Springfield. The two men stumbled upon a two-story that was only a few years old completely upon accident and were in awe that they could actually afford it when combining their incomes together.

They moved in on a Sunday with the help of Homer, Barney and Moe. Well, less so Moe. He just kind of stood around snarkily directing traffic and then insisting they pay him for the keg he'd brought for the end of the evening.

With a house full of boxes and surprisingly barely any furniture between them, Lenny and Carl sat on the floor of their new home eating chinese takeout and discussing their big plans for their new place.

It was a good feeling.

...

Heading to the plant the next morning after moving in hadn't been pleasant but they still had jobs to get to after all. The commute together in Lenny's car was surprisingly better than imagined.

The man let him pick the radio station they listened to while he drove allowing Carl to take in the beauty that was “south junction and warehouse central”.

Once they got to work, the day passed by without much fanfare. Push this button, monitor that screen, you know, the usual.

It was around quitting time when the men's moods and energy both perked up. They'd head to Moe's to meet up with their friends, though this time, together in Lenny's car before heading back home.

Home. That was a term that never made Carl feel any differently. It had been just a word before. But strangely, now it seemed to make his chest get all fluttery.

The man grimaced at the idea. That's stupid. And went on about his way down to the exit to meet up with his friend.

...

“And so I told her... no, you're in the wrong house!” Homer laughed drunkenly, joining in with the chorus of guys sitting all around him.

They all turned to look at Lenny and Carl as they entered the tavern. Carl half expected them to shout their names or somethin'.

“So... how's the new abode?” Moe smirked, wasting no time at all latching on to the topic with a curious gleam in his eye.

The two sat down at the bar and waited for the man to pour them beers. 

Lenny took his in hand and gave the man a big smile. “Oh, it's great! I mean, this place? it's huge! You oughta see it, Moe!”

The bartender's face fell and he paused before sliding a mug of Duff over to Carl. “I was... I was there, ya knuckle head, like yesterday.”

Carl laughed into his beer at the man's forgetfulness as Homer stumbled over to the men. He hadn't been sitting very far away but his energetic nature kept him from staying on his stool. 

“Hey guys! So, when's the party? Hmmmm? I need to get down, man! Want to let my hair loose! Get jiggy with it! Comprende?” He chuckled, patting both of their backs.

Honestly, Carl didn't know where the man got his exuberant nature but sometimes it made him jealous the way he could so easily be the life of any party.

Lenny spun in his seat to face the man. “Oh, well, I was actually thinking we should have a party. Like uh... some kinda house warming thing?” He eyed Carl with a shrug of his shoulders and a small smile.

“Yeah... I mean, I don't know. The place is kind of a mess right now.” 

“Oh, come on, Carl! Geez! Way to be a stick in the mud!” The bald man complained.

“I'm not bein' a stick in the mud, Homer. Everything's still in boxes, ya know? It's gonna be weeks before we get everything ready anyway.”

Homer rolled his eyes and grabbed another freshly poured Duff from Moe before heading back towards Barney.

Lenny seemed nonplussed by his friend's dour attitude but that was always the way it went really. He turned to him with a wink and a smile. “It's gonna be so great, Carl!”

The man could only smile back in return as he sipped at his Duff, wondering why he was suddenly feeling so weirded out about their new house. Maybe it was just the fact that he'd never really had a roommate before. Maybe it was because his “roommate” was Lenny.

The brunette glanced his way again and smiled, causing his heart to flutter a bit more. Carl quickly downed his Duff and called Moe back over for another.

...

They have the party and everyone comes, even people they didn't invite. Word must have got around that there was an “anything goes” thing happening at their place. 

Lenny had had the idea of making it a housewarming/Halloween party and so most of the guests had turned up in costume. Lenny himself was dressed as Ernie from Sesame Street while Carl was dressed as Bert. He'd never been much of a Halloween fan and thus had wanted to dress simply as a vampire. But upon pressure from Lenny had agreed to join in on his joint costume with him. Their guests seemed to get a major kick out of it though the humor seemed lost on Carl entirely.

After many drinks, Lenny had situated himself up on top of their new coffee table in the living room, rocking out to “Rock Lobster” and eating pumpkin pie straight out of his palm.

Barney had already tried to steal the keg Moe had brought them for himself and it seemed Homer had brought along a few ferrets to the party to the behest of Carl. It seemed no matter where he went, he always had a surprise up his sleeve.

Most of the party guests were heavily intoxicated after only an hour and a half and the party had begun to wind down. Carl had had a few beers but nothing compared to Lenny. He'd helped him down from the table quietly and pulled him towards the kitchen to try to calm his raucousness. It was there that the trouble began a brewing.

“Why you want me to get down from the table?” Lenny slurred, his wig sliding down and partially obscuring his vision. “That was prime real estate!”

Carl rolled his eyes. “I just didn't want you to bust your head open. Plus we kinda just bought that.”

“Stick in the mud!” 

Carl watched as the man searched the counter tops and tables around them. “Where's my drink?”

“I think you finished it a while ago.”

“Oh.”

“Maybe you should taper off a bit. It's getting late.”

Walking entirely too close to him, Lenny seemed to try to push Carl up against the wall behind him though he failed due to his intense inebriation. So he just paused there, gripping each of the man's biceps in appreciation. 

Lenny grinned at him. “Hey, this is so cool, ya know? We have a house!” He looked elated and Carl couldn't help but smile and nod at him.

“Yeah man, it is cool.”

“Now... we never have to be apart.” Lenny laughed at some unknown joke, hiccuping a little as he leaned even closer in to Carl.

It was then a few guys entered the kitchen from the back door, having been smoking outside. They spared them a look or two but kept moving back towards where the bass of the music was thumping from the living room.

Carl looked mildly uncomfortable at the situation though Lenny didn't seem to notice at all. He leaned even closer in to him if that were possible and leaned up to kiss him soundly on the lips.

A thousand thoughts raced through his mind despite the very short amount of time their lips actually connected. It wasn't the first time they'd kissed and it wasn't that unexpected or weird. Hell, it wasn't even the first time they'd kissed that year! It was however, very unexpected how normal this all seemed to Carl.

As Lenny leaned back happily, Carl searched his mind for reasons as to why he shouldn't be as happy as Lenny was right in this moment.

He looked around the kitchen, at the stack of boxes in the corner they still had yet to unpack with their dishes and odds and ends in them. He thought about how easy it'd been to make the decision to move out of the dusty old home he was renting and in to his big, beautiful two story with Lenny.

Everything was great, it was perfect really, so why was he looking for a problem?

…

The party was over and had already been ranked a wild success by an ecstatic Homer as he stumbled his way out their front door. It was the talk of the season, he'd insisted.

As Carl said goodbye to the last guests and shut the front door, he spotted Lenny heading towards the sliding glass door and the back yard.

Following him outside, he paused near the edge of the patio, his eyes moving towards their so-far unused fire pit.

“Hey.” He said, beckoning Lenny's attention as he turned back to him, cigarette held halfway to his lips. “Wanna light this thing?”

Sitting beside the roaring fire, each sat in a turquoise lawn chair, Carl couldn't help but marvel at the weirdness of his life. Lenny was smoking a cigarette, eyes glued to the starry night sky above as Carl's eyes were glued to the image of him.

It was a bit chilly out, nearing midnight, but not too bad. Besides, all the man could think about was kissing his best friend once more.

Carl began to ponder his life choices up until this point, everything that had led them here, to sitting in their back yard, at their house.

So what if he loves him as more than just a friend? Why does everything have to be so complicated all the time? Maybe Bert was the perfect costume choice for him. Lenny had picked perfectly. He was a logical, curmudgeonly, stick in the mud. But somehow, Lenny still liked him just the same.

Lenny finished his cigarette and stubbed it out on the edge of his arm rest. As his eyes met Carl's, he gave him a curious smile. “What?”

And so, Carl leaned in quickly, snatching the man's shirt gingerly in his grasp, pulling him closer to him. Carl kissed him firmly on the lips, deciding then and there, that this was the absolute best night of his life.

They stay like that for a moment, Carl almost forgetting to breathe in his haste to keep his lips firmly planted on the other man's. He pulls away reluctantly. 

Lenny is wide eyed as he sits back in his own lawn chair staring at his friend. Neither say anything for a while though Lenny has a huge smile plastered across his face.

They don't really talk much more about it and soon go upstairs to bed exhausted from the night's events. There's no discussion about whose bed to sleep in, with Carl following behind Lenny towards one of the bedrooms, the one housing the large King-sized bed. Carl doesn't think there will be more than one bed for too much longer anyway. Who needs it?

...

Bored out of their minds on a Sunday afternoon, the two men decide to head to Target. As they begin wandering around aimlessly, poking at this and that, Lenny starts filling their red cart with “treasures” he's found for their new home's decor. Not really his area of expertise, Carl just keeps silent, watching the brunette grab this and that. 

After getting a soft pretzel for Lenny because he just had to have one, the two began wandering towards the exit finally.

“I think we've bought quite enough useless junk, don't you?” Carl said, with an eye roll. 

“I dunno, I think we could use a few more skeleton cats. I mean, they're only going to be on sale for another few days. It's half off, Carl!”

“Um... how about we get some more next time? Four hours is too long for a Target run.”

Lenny bumped against him affectionately smiling. “Oh okay. Hey, you wanna get pizza for dinner?”

“Sure, Len.” Carl grinned down at him as they headed out to their car, wrapping an arm around his new beau. 

As the sun began to set in the foreground, Carl mused at their life together. It was a good feeling.


End file.
